The title of 2024 ACF Western Region Student Team of the Year went to Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, Calif., after qualifier competitions this spring. John Bartimole caught up with the team’s manager, ACF Chef and Orange Coast instructor April Thompson to talk about the strengths of the team, which included student culinarians Claire Arredondo, Morgan Downie, Blanca Granados, Genisis Mascareno, Monique Robinson. What were the winning dishes? The winning appetizer was a pan-seared tilapia with braised fennel, fava bean puree, harissa veloute, and seafood empanada. The salad was an orzo sal ..read more

ACF Chef Tom Tobin, CEC, earned the title of ACF’s 2024 Western Region Chef of the Year following the qualifier competitions this spring. John Bartimole caught up with Chef Tobin to learn more about his background and future goals. How did you get into the culinary world? My career spans more than 20 years, and it begins with my brother, who is 10 years older than I and who went into culinary. I began when I was 16, and my first real job was at Sea World as a prep cook. An early mentor of mine was Chef Jerry Dollar and he introduced me to the ACF. My parents weren’t culinarians, but there is a ..read more

ACF Chef Spyridon (Spiro) Giannakoulopoulos, CEC, culinary arts instructor at Eastern Suffold BOCES, an inclusive educational cooperative of 51 Long Island school districts, took home a gold medal and the title of ACF’s 2024 Northeast Region Chef of the Year following the qualifier competitions this spring. John Bartimole caught up with the winner to learn more about his background and future goals. How did you get into the culinary arts? Big question! Since I was young I was always interested in what was going on in the kitchen. I spent time with my Hispanic grandmother creating traditional m ..read more

Mikayla Pabroada is a second-year student at the Culinary Institute of New York’s Monroe College By John Bartimole No one can say Mikayla Pabroada is a newcomer to the kitchen. The second-year student at the Culinary Institute of New York’s Monroe College and the Northeast Region Student Chef of the Year has been in the kitchen since she was seven years old, when she was living in her native Philippines. “I got my love of cooking from my grandma and my dad,” she says. “I loved to be in the kitchen with them, watching them cooking and trying to help them.” When her family moved to the United St ..read more

By Amelia Levin It’s tough to stay on track with a healthy diet while working long hours in a kitchen or while competing in competitions. ACF Chef Tim Recher, CEC, AAC, executive chef, Frenchman’s Creek Beach and Country Club, Naples, Fla., knows this first-hand. “Being a chef, you’re surrounded by food all the time,” says Chef Recher, a member of the 2024 ACF Culinary Team USA. “There are nights where I used to have a big bowl of French fries sitting in front of me and I’m busy and hungry and not watching what I’m doing so I’m just mindlessly eating.” In addition to taking up training for an ..read more

By Amelia Levin Meditating is all the rage right now. Mental health experts tell us that practicing mindfulness — not just in the morning, but throughout the day — can do wonders for our mental health and truly change lives. If you’re not already into meditating, however, it can seem like a daunting task. How do I start? How do I commit? How do I work it into my busy day as a chef or student or educator? ACF Chef Michael Salvatore, III, CEC, senior director, consulting and customer engagement, Ruck-Shockey Associates, Inc., began a morning meditation practice back in 2017, starting with just f ..read more

Sponsored by Smithfield Culinary With operators still facing labor challenges, quick and effortless dishes are more critical than ever. We’ve tapped noteworthy chefs to lend their expertise on appetizers, entrees and sides that are as easy as one, two, three using Smithfield Smoke’NFast and other Smithfield ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat products. Here are some tips for keeping back-of-house costs low and flavor and quality high. Employ cross-utilization and source seasonal and value-added products. Cross-utilization: Find multiple unique uses for products across the menu. This can include add ..read more

ACF Chef Paul Bringas, CEC, brought his team from Joliet Junior College in Illinois, to victory as 2024 ACF Central Region Student Team Champions following the qualifier competitions this spring. We spoke to Chef Bringas about how he coached his team — made up of students Ryan Radetski, Olivia Valentino, Nalia Warmack, Nicole Wiseman and Thomas Yanek — to not only bring home a gold medal, but also the chance to compete for the national title at the 2024 ACF National Convention. What were the team’s main strengths? The most interesting thing about coaching is you’re getting a very diverse group ..read more

By Kenya McCullum ACF Pastry Chef Kelli D. Marks, who was named the 2024 ACF Central Region Pastry Chef of the Year following the regional qualifier competitions this spring started out studying advertising in college, earning an MBA, and working as a writer at an advertising agency before switching gears to the culinary industry. She inadvertently discovered her passion when she decided to make a cake for her grandparents’ 50th wedding anniversary, loving it so much that she went on to make cakes for family and friends. Later, she combined her business acumen with her passion to open her own ..read more

By Kenya McCullum Nickolas C. Abbott, CC, was named the 2024 ACF Southeast Region Student Chef of the Year after winning gold at the ACF regional qualifier competition in April. As someone who grew up on a farm and always associated cooking with an expression of love, it was natural for him to go to culinary school to share that love with others. We spoke to Chef Abbott about his studies and what he plans to do in the future. What culinary school are you attending and what made you choose that school? I recently graduated from Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College [an ACF-accredited p ..read more